Control valve



Oct. 6, 1936. J. BYsTRlcKYE-r A1.

CONTROL VALVE Filed May 7, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet l Oct. 6, 1936.,

J. BYSTRICKY ET AL CONTROL VALVE Filed May '7, 1934 2 Sheets-Shea*l 2 Patented Oct. 6, 1936 fQFFlCE 2,056,259 coNTnoL VALVE Joseph .Bystriky and `Waiter Schmid, ,Qhiage Ill., yassignors to Stewart-Warner :Corporatiom `C "Aca o, I ll., a corporation'of' YitgginiaY Application May 7, 1934, Serial VNO. 724,301

16 claims- (m2211414) Our invention relates to a control valve and particularly to a control valve for use V with high pressure greasing equipment.

-More particularly, our invention relates to improvements onthe control valve shown in cepending application of Joseph Bystricky and George H Yhomas, Serial No. 677,242, filed June 23, 1933. InV high pressure greasing, it is customary to provide a power compressor which pumps grease through a suitable conduit or hose to the bearing toY be lubricated. The flow of grease maybe co-ntrolled by a valve located in the` conduit or hose line near the end to be attached to thebearng. This valve may be of the typeshown in the above- 15 mentioned copendingapplication. In operation f n ot only the section of the conduit or hose between lthe ycompressor and valve, but also that between'the valve and the bearing, isunder very high pressure which may be as great as 10,0700

20 pounds per square inch.` If this pressure is not relieved before `disconnecting lthe conduitufrom thel bearing, grease lwill spurt out of the free end of the hose 4when 1such disconnection is effected. This is causedpartly by the sudden contraction of the hose as pressure is'released and partly by the expansionff small quantities of air-.frequently present in the grease. Also where couplings are used which mechanioauyfeueohihe hoseto. e. fitting leading to the I bearing; to be lubricated, it is usually desirable. to V relievethe pressure in thecouplingfin order to s vate detachment ofthecoupling f'romrthe facil' fitting.

It is an importantfunction .of ourimproved control. valve to provide a means for relieving the pressure in the conduit between the valve andthe tting.

Another object is to provide a means for relieving this pressure automaticallyupon .closing movement of the control valve.

Another object is to provide a chamber for receiving the grease which may beexpelledaspressure 'is relieved by the automatic action of the valve.

45 .Another` object in one form vof our invention is 7 Jto provide a chamber which .isexpansible vto receive expelled grease.

Another object is to provide an over-flow means from a retaining chamber, whichwill allowgrease to escape from the chamber when itvhas become lled with grease, but not before. Another object is to provide an overl-flow means from an expansible chambenwhich Will'pallow grease to escape from the chamber when its limit oi, expansion is reached, but not before.

Another object isto provide `a means for expelling'g'reas'e from the rretaining chamber at the willv f the operator.

*Another object is Yto provide a Vcontrol valve which 'embodies an'automatic pressure relief and aretaining chamber Y"for'accumulating expelled z.

grease, and which is`,at the same time, neat, corripact,v pleasing in appearance, and inexpensive vto manufacture. lurther objects and advantages of our invention willampearin thecourse of the following lspecication.V "Best'understanding of -our invention may be hadby-fon'c 4skilled in the art by reference to the following drawings in which:

'Figure 1 Kisj'an' enlarged longitudinal sectional view*showingv the operating parts .of our improved control valve; Figure 2 is, a sectional view of our control `valve along the-lineZl-Z of Figure 1;

'l'iigure 3is a partial section along the lined- 3 of Figure-1; Y

Figure v4 is a fragmentary elevational view 0f the upper end of the body of the control valve'of Figure f1, showing the port arrangement;

" Figure 5` isa longitudinal sectional elevation of A a'mo'diiie'd formfof our control valve; and

'Figureis' aside Aelevational view on a reduced scale ofthe modification ,shown inligure 5.

""R'eferr'ing now to 'Figure 1:

vvThemairi body I0 ofv our valve is a casting havl ingia-central chamber-I2 extending throughout 'its-length] A high pressure grease hoseis connected`in-any suitable manner, .as by way of a coupling `|-6"'and suitable unions indicated generallyiatill8,to'thel`lower or inlet endof the central 'chamber` I2.v y

' Theoutlet conduit is here shown as a pipe 20 which isfscrew-threadcd intoan opening. leading to theupper'pa'rt ofthe central chamber I2.

' To Acontrol the--iiow'v of grease we utilize a valve e system' likethat described in; the aforementioned copen'ding application. 4This valve system4 forms no partAv f Yurpresent invention and will accordingly'bedescribed only briey. JA normally spring seated valve 22 passage'ldv terminating in a valve seat26. Valve 22 'has a'square'shank23 which passes through a cylindrical guide' 25 4s`o that grease may flow lpast"`it whenfthe valve is opened. Cooperating withvalveZZ we provide'a second valvel 28 which has a vlower conical -closure member 1 30 seating asuitablevalv'e seatwasher 32. This" valve lseat washer is held in Vplace between a s 1eev'ef34 screwrihreadd ieioihe .mein body 0f the 'ij/alie is provided which has a central closes the passage 24 through the latter.

and a guide 36. To hold the second valve 28 normally closed, a tapered coiled spring 38 is provided which seats against the valve seat washer 32 and acts against an upper conical closure member 4G of the valve.

This valve system is operated by a plunger 42 which at its lower end engages valve member 30. This plunger has ilat sides so that grease may iiow by'it. It is furnished with a guide-at its upper end which also serves as a packing or stuffing box. To form this guide and packing;

two soit packing washers 44 are spaced apart by two spacing washers 48 and are held tightly in place between two metal washers'bymeans of a screw threaded bushing 49. The spacing washers 48 serve to form an annular space 50 for a purpose which will `appear hereinafter.'

The plunger 42 is held in up or closed position by a coiled spring 52 which acts against'a washer 54 staked to the plunger and seats against an inwardly extending ilange of the plunger guide 36. The plunger is actuated by means of a handle 58 pivoted on a pair of floating links 68. An aperture 62 is provided in the handle which ts over the conduit 20. The handle engages the plunger by means of an adjustable screw-threaded member 64 on the handle and a cup-shaped member 66 which is screw-threaded into the plunger 42.

Thus far the operation of our valve is as follows: When the plunger is actuated by the handle, it iirst engages the second valve member 28 and unseats the lower conical closure element 38 against the Vpressure oi' the grease. This takes place with a sudden movement when the hand pressure becomes great enough to overcome the grease pressure. The second valve member thus moves quickly into closing engagement with the lower or first valve member 22 and thereby As a result, a spurt of grease is allowed to pass by the second valve member and up along the outside oi the plunger to the outlet conduit 20.

, If a steady ilow of grease is desired, the handle is further actuated so that the plungerv continues its movement and acting through valve member 28 unseats valve member 22, thus allowing the grease to flow past it. When the handle is released the valves are operated to close in reverse J sequence. It will be seen, however, that grease will remain under pressure above the valves even after the valves have been closed. This is particularly true wherev a viscous grease is being forced into a tight bearing, Our invention provides a ,means for relieving this pressure. An axial passage 68 is provided through plunger 42 and at the lower end of the plungerja seat 'I8 is provided for engagement with the upper conical closure member 48 of valvek 28. When the plunger is moved indownward orY Valve opening direction this seat closes the axial passage so that grease maynot pass into it. However, when the plunger is allowed to move in an upward or valve closing direction, the seat 'l0 is disengaged and grease may passinto and through the axial passage 68 in the plunger,

An outlet from the passage 68 in the plunger is provided by cross bores l2 in its upper end. Surrounding the cross bores is the annular space 58 formed between the spacing washers 48, and vthis leads in turn through suitable drilled out -ducts 52 to a second retaining chamber 74. (See Figures 2 and 3.) These ductsY are suitably stopped against leakage to the outside by tight fitting plugs 16.

Within the retaining chamber we have provided a hollow expelling plunger 18 which is tted with a cup-leather head 80 at one end and with an operating knob 82 at the outer end. The expelling plunger 'I8 passes through a guide and packing comprising a retaining bushing 84, a washer of packing material 85, and a screwthreaded bushing 86. Cross holes 81 are provided to allow ingress of grease to the hollow part of the plunger.

It will be noted that the operating knob 82 is provided with a skirt which surrounds and covers thescrew-threaded bushing 86. The knob has 4a central passage in which is located a ball and spring valve 88. The valve operates in a suitable v recess 98 within the knob.

This valve is provided for the purpose of retaining any grease which may accumulate within the hollow expelling plunger so that it will not drip outon the operators hands or clothing. It will be seen, however, that when the retaining chamber is lled by increments of grease, the grease will iind an outlet through the cross-holes 81 and the hollow expelling plunger and will iinally be forced past the ball and spring valve 88. The operator may then expel all of the grease from the retaining chamber by pulling the knob 82 outwardly. The expelled grease may, of course, be deposited back in the supply barrel or in any suitable retainer.

We have shown .a modified form of our invention in Figures 5 and 6. In this form the duct 52a leads into the retaining chamber above the cup-leather head 80EL of the expelling plunger and the valve 88a is provided with a suiiiciently strong spring so that the grease pressure will not cause the valve to open until the plunger has been forced outwardly to the limit of its movement. In this way the operator will be able to know how much of the retaining chamber has been filled with grease without waiting until the grease has begun to leak past the valve. While throughout this specification we have referred to the use of this valve in connection with high pressure greasing, it will be equally useful when anyjluid under high pressure is to be controlled, and therefore wherever the wordfgrease is used in this specification, it should be understood that it is intended to include not only grease, but any uid under high pressure.

While we have thus described a specic embodiment of our invention, we do not intend to limit ourselves to this particular form.

We claim:

' 1. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a body providing a valve chamber and a cylinder, a valve located in said valve chamber and normally preventing lubricant flow therethrough, resilient means urging said valve toward closed position, other means for opening said valve to permit flow of lubricant through said valve chamber, Va discharge conduit for lubricant owing past said valve, means acting automatically to establish communication between said cylinder and the outlet side of said valve upon A'closure thereof whereby lubricant pressure in said conduit may be relieved by flow of lubricant from said conduit into said cylinder, and a valved exit for said cylinder.

2. In mechanism of the class described, means providing a lubricant passageway, and a discharge conduit and receptacle normally com# municating in parallel with one end of said passageway, means whereby lubricant under pressure may be supplied to the other end of said passageway, normally closed valve means inter'- virnentioned/ end yof said: passageway, valve means intermediate ,the ends` of said passageway `to cont-roll flow therethrough-:valve means controlling .communication 'betweenxsaid passageway `and said receptacle, la single-handle for operating saidvtwo valve means simultaneously whereby onefis closedwhen the other is open,vsaid receptacle `means receiving lubricant from said conduit whereby lubricantl pressure .in said ccnduitis .re- ,-lieved, and .means for .discharging from said receptacle means any lubricant collected therein.

4. In combination of means adapted to be connected'fwith a source providing a passageway of fluidlike substance under pressure, a discharge con- =duitlconnectedto saidv passageway, valve means in said passagewaytocontrol flow therethrough, manual means for opening said valve means,y and means ifor relieving 'pressure in said discharge conduit and J-that partfof said passageway adjacent thereto comprising a cylinder, means for placing said cylinder in communication with said passageway and discharge conduit when` said valve means is in closed position, a piston reciprocable in said cylinder to discharge the huidlike substance therefrom, and a valved exit for said cylinder permitting discharge therefrom whenever the pressure in said cylinder exceeds a few pounds above atmospheric pressure.

5. In mechanism of the class described, means providing a passageway adapted to be connected at one end to a source of uid-like substance under pressure and at the other end with a part to be supplied with said huid-like substance, a Valve for controlling flow through said passageway, a receptacle, means for operating said valve, means providing communication between said receptacle and the outlet side of said valve whereby increments of said fluid-like substance may pass from said passageway to said receptacle, and means for indicating at all times the quantity of huid-like substance in said receptacle.

6. In lubricating apparatus of the class described, the combination of means providing a passageway adapted to be connected at one end to a source of lubricant under pressure and at the other end to a bearing, a valve for controlling ow through said passageway and into said bearing, a receptacle, common means for opening said valve and controlling communication between said receptacle and said passageway, means for indicating the quantity of lubricant in said receptacle, and means in said receptacle for discharging lubricant therefrom.

'7. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a body providing a passageway adapted to be connected at one end to a source of fluid-like substance under pressure and at the other end with means for receiving said substance, a valve controlling flow through said means for `limiting Ying said-'passageway ,throng-h, ga receptacle, means -for establishing Vcommunication:between said receptacle and, said passagewayto `relieve pressure existing'` in the mechanism of 'the class described, the

-fpassageway,.-,a receptacle, means for;establishing communication-with said `receptacleand said passageway ,ftorelieve vthe pressurev therein ,and the pressure-.which can be built )up in said receptacle. Y 4 Y 1 8. -Iny ,mechanism Aof the class describe :l,` the `combination of a body providing a passageway .adapted for .attachment at one endwith a source of'ffluidiunder pressurewand at .theother Vend rwithapart for receiving said fluid, a'valve n ormally closing said passageway, means for opento permit-huid to flow therelatter, means for indicating the quantityof V'fluid in said receptacle, lmeans for discharging uid yfrom saidreceptacle, and means for preventing :the creation-cfa high pressure in said receptacle. the

-.9. In mechanisml of the-class described, combination :of- .a body y.providing apassageway adapted to be connected at one end to a source of :luid under pressure and at the other'end-.to-a part. for receiving said huid, a valve controlling `said passageway, means for operating said valve, 5 axcylindrical receptacle, a piston'in said recepytacle,-means for establishing communication between ;said passageway-and a part of saidy receptacle .abovesaidpistorn means carried-by said zpiston forindicatingfthefposition thereof in said receptacle, and meansvwhereby-v said piston may be reciprocated to discharge uid from said-refceptacle.

10. :In mechanism or `thefclass described', means providing a passageway adapted to be connected at one end to a source of lubricant under pressure and at the other end to a bearing for receiving a lubricant, a valve normally closing said passageway, means for operating said valve, a receptacle, means for connecting the `discharge end of said passageway with said receptacle to relieve the pressure in said passageway, a piston in said receptacle, said piston having a passageway therethrough, a valve located in said passageway, and means for reciprocating said piston.

11. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a body providing a passageway therethrough, a valve normally closing said passageway, means whereby said passageway can be connected with a source of fluid under pressure and whereby said passageway can be further connected with a part for receiving said fluid, valve means controlling flow through said passageway, a receptacle, means for operating said valve and for establishing communication be-A tween said passageway and said receptacle, a piston in said receptacle, a handle for operating said piston, a hollow stem connecting said piston with said handle, said hollow stem communicating with said receptacle and providing an outlet passage therefor, and valve means in said handle controlling said passage.

12. In mechanism of the class described, the combination of a body providing a passageway adapted to be connected at one end with a source of liuid under pressure and at the other end with a part for receiving such fluid, a member located in said passageway and having a valve element at each end, a seat cooperating with one of said valve elements to prevent ow through said passageway, a member providing a pressure relief passageway, said last-named member cooperating with the other valve element to close said pressure relief passageway, and a single handle for controlling ow through said rst-narned passageway and for controlling communication between said passageways.

13. In lubricating apparatus of the class described, a body providing a passageway and a receptacle, said passageway adapted to have one of its ends connected with a source of lubricant under pressure and its other Yend connected to a bearing,l a valve normally closing said passage- Way, a tubular member for opening said valve, said Vtubular member affording communication between said passageway and said-receptacle, said tubular member and valve having cooperatlng parts to close communication between said passageway and receptacle when said valve is opened, and a handle for reciprocating said tubular member.

14. In lubricating apparatus of the class described, a body providing a passageway and a receptacle, said passageway adapted to have one of its ends connected with a source of lubricant under pressure and its other end connected to a bearing, a valve normally closing said passageway, a tubular member for opening said valve, said tubular member affording communication between said passageway and said receptacle,

said tubular member and valve having cooperating parts to close communication between said passageway and receptacle when said valve is opened, a -handle for reciprocating said tubular member, and means for indicating the quantity of lubricant in said receptacle.

15. In lubricating apparatus of the class described, a body providing a passageway and a receptacle, said passageway adapted to have one `of-its ends connected with a source of lubricant under -pressure and its other end connected to a bearing, al valve normally closing said passageway, a tubular member for opening said Valve, said tubular member affording communication between said passageway and said receptacle, said tubular member and valve having cooperating parts to close communication between said passageway and receptacle when said valve is opened,-a handle for reciprocating said tubular member, means for indicating the quantity of lubricant in said receptacle, and means for discharging lubricant therefrom.

16. In lubricating apparatus of the class described, a body providing a passageway and a receptacle, said passageway adapted to have one of its ends connected with a source of lubricant under pressure and its other end lconnected to a bearing, a Valve normally closing said passageway, a tubular member for opening said valve, said tubular member aiording communication between said passageway and said receptacle, said tubular member and valve having cooperating parts to close communication between said passageway and ,receptacley when said valve is opened, Ya handle for reciprocating said tubular member, means for indicating the quantity of lubricant in said receptacle, means for discharging lubricant therefrom, and means for limiting the pressure which can be built up in said receptacle. p

JOSEPH BYSI'RICKY.

WALTER SCHMID. 

